UNCG 3, Longwood 1
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The UNCG men’s soccer team picked up its first home win of the season and improved to 2-1-0 on the year Friday night as the Spartans rolled past Longwood 3-1 at the UNCG Soccer Stadium in nonconference play.
The Spartans return to action Tuesday night when they travel to Columbia, S.C., to take on South Carolina. The game starts at 7 p.m. and will be broadcast on ESPN3 and the SEC Network +.
The Spartans opened the scoring in the 19th minute of play as they scored off a nice combination starting from the back. Junior defender Nicholas Downs made a run down the left-hand side and sent a ball to the top of the 18-yard box to forward Jacques Francois. Francois possessed the ball and dropped it off to Downs, who continued his run. Downs took his first touch and ripped a shot into the bottom corner past keeper Carl Carpenter for the 1-0 lead.
Longwood came back and tied the game at 1-1 in the 32nd minute of play. Willy Miezan came off the bench and instantly provided a spark. He took a long ball at the top of the 18-yard box and beat two UNCG defenders before finding the bottom corner.
The Spartans retook the lead in the 42nd minute of action when junior Damieon Thomas beat a defender to the ball and poked it into the back of the net off a corner kick for his first career goal as a Spartan.
UNCG extended its lead to 3-1 in the 58th minute of action. Senior Ben Burdon made a run through the midfield and sent a long ball down the right-hand side. Defender Quin Lema took his first touch and ripped a cross into the 6-yard box. Francois was there on the end to power the cross into the back of the net for his first goal of the season and the two-goal cushion.
Wofford 0, Davidson 0 (2OT)
DAVIDSON, N.C. – After an almost two-hour weather delay stalled the start of the match, Wofford battled the Davidson Wildcats to a 2-2 tie after two overtimes Friday night.
Down 2-1 in the waning minutes of the match, forward Matthew Aurednik scored the game-tying goal for the Terriers in the 86th minute on a header that got past Wildcat goalkeeper Matt Pacifici. Forward Nicky Watson led Aurednik with a centering pass from the wing to earn the assist.
The Terriers took an early lead in the match in the 13th minute. Midfielder Jonathan Dean launched a corner kick into the box, and defender Connor Davis headed the ball into the net for his second goal of the season. It was also Dean’s third assist of the year.
Davidson did not wait long to answer, however, as Wildcat forward Valeriy Sviderskiy scored the tying goal in the 20th minute, with an assist given to Maxi Pragnell.
Back-and-forth play ensued past halftime and deep into the second half before the advantage swung in Davidson’s favor. Midfielder Christian Fechtner scored in the 76th minute to give Davidson a 2-1 lead.
Wofford next plays back at home against Presbyterian on Sept. 8. That match at Snyder Field will start at 7 p.m., and admission is free.
Furman vs. Northern Illinois canc.
GREEENVILLE, S.C. – Furman and Northern Illinois waited over three hours to kick off on Friday night, only to have their match suspended due to lightning in the 29th minute on Seagraves Field at Stone Stadium.
The Paladins and Huskies will receive no result for the match. Furman will host Winthrop in the final match of the Diadora/Spinx Gray Griffin Memorial Tournament on Sunday at 2:30 p.m., while Northern Illinois will battle College of Charleston at 12 p.m. on Sunday.
Charleston claimed a 1-0 victory over Winthrop in the opening game of the tournament on Friday afternoon.